York climate activists protested outside a firm's headquarters in the city due to fears over a coal mine in Cumbria.

Yesterday (September 15) members of Extinction Rebellion (XR) York gathered outside the HISCOX building, off Peasholm Green, with banners, flags, placards, and a letter to present to the office.

XR says the letter urged HISCOX not to insure the new coal mine near Whitehaven, in West Cumbria.

The group were refused entry to the building so the letter was handed to a security guard to take into the offices.


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A member of XR York named Laura said: "They shut their doors, while, at the same time, also shutting their ears to the uncomfortable truth about the projects they seek to underwrite."

Andrew Taylor from Coal Action Network said: “The British government has ignored the pressure from people across the UK who are calling for them to stop the climate-wrecking West Cumbria coal mine, so today people have taken to the streets to demand that insurers and banks, including HSBC, turn their backs on this disastrous fossil fuel project."

The coal mine was approved in December and will be the UK’s first new deep coal mine for 30 years.

HISCOX declined to comment.